Tots on Crack!
by Choco.Sushi.Nut
Summary: Watch as our favorite Miami CSIs grow up... on CRACK! [not what you think... XD] AU. NED, MarisH, CaPe, & RaVe! As always: Read, Review, and Enjoy!
1. Introductions

**Disclaimer: **I am NOT the proud of owner of CSI: Miami. Oh well.

**A/N: **I forgot how I came up with this, I just remember it semi-sparked while talking with **floofymiko**. Thank you! XD. The pairings will be NED, MarisH, CaPe, and RaVe. This is completely AU and crack and will span from their toddler age (well depends on the character) to present time. I'll try to keep it in chronological order, but no promises! XD. Oh yeah, it's basically a bunch of drabbles that are connected together by Time.

* * *

**Introductions:**

She had been teaching preschoolers, pre-kindergarteners, and kindergarteners for several years now, but little did she know, that this year, as well as the following two, would be the class that would change her view of little kids forever.

"Hello, my name is Miss Violet!" The young woman cheerily greeted the sea of little three-year old toddlers; they were all sitting around a circular world map rug. "And welcome to your _first _year at Sunset Academy!"

Clapping her hands together in anticipation, she cheerfully said, "_Introduction_ time! We'll go around this circle this way." She made a wide counter-clockwise motion with her hand. "Let's start with you dear." She faced the little tomboy in overalls sitting next to her.

"_Me_? I'm Valera." The little girl with messy boy-short hair waved ecstatically to everybody.

"Sweetie," the young educator was holding the class roster, "you can tell everyone your first name."

The tomboy gave her teacher a wide-eyed, confused look. "But… my name's _Valera_."

"Oh. Okay. That's fine." She made a mental note to call her that. "What's your name, honey?"

The little brown-haired boy looked around the circle. "The name's Speed. Yo."

It was Miss Violet's turn to become wide-eyed. _Who taught him his vocabulary?_ She didn't even bother to tell that that was _part_ of his last name and dryly asked for the next person.

The tiny mocha-colored boy with chubby cheeks didn't respond. At all.

Figuring it was due to shyness or fear of the first day of school, she asked him again. "Honey, what's your name?"

He just looked down at his lap.

The boy named 'Speed,' spoke up. "My brothers have a name for people who can't talk." He slapped his pudgy hand in the shape of an 'L' on his forehead. The silent boy just drew his folded legs closer and hugged them against his chest.

Mrs. Violet's lips grew taut, "Mr. Speed. That's not a very nice thing to say. I want you to apologize to him right now."

"Sorry, ma'am." He peered at the boy next to him. "I'm Speed. Wanna be friends?"

The other boy said nothing, but only buried his head further into his knees.

Speed shrugged. He could never back away from a challenge. He'd try again later.

Miss Violet sighed and continued. _I hope that little boy is okay. _She decided that she would use the process of elimination to figure his name out. "Who's next?"

"My name is Alexx!" She smiled warmly. "I like dolls."

"Hi! My name is Calleigh!" The little girl's eyes shone as brightly as her smile and blonde hair. "I like guns. Daddy's got one… it's shiny…" Miss Violet's eyebrow twitched at her confession.

"My name is…" the neat brown-haired boy shrugged. He didn't know. "Am I in twouble?"

"No, of course not!" His instructor quickly reassured him. "We'll figure that out later. Okay?" She shot him a wide smile that instantly quelled his inner worry. "Next?"

By the time the introductions were over, Miss Violet was almost completely frazzled. _What did I get myself into this year?_ She had checked off every name on the roster save two masculine names. "Eric Delko?" No one responded and so called out the other name. "Ryan Wolfe?"

There was a hesitation, but then a shout. The forgetful little brown-haired boy shot his hand up into the air. "OOH OOH! That's me! I'm Ryan Wolfe!"

The young woman was amused by the small child's enthusiasm. "See, you remembered. Very good!" Ryan beamed at the compliment. "So, if you're Ryan, then _you_'re Eric Delko?"

The little mocha cream-colored boy moved his head up in recognition, but still didn't utter a single syllable. The miniscule movement was enough for Miss Violet to check him off her roster. _Okay, then_.

"Now, say hi to one another!" She refused to lose her optimism for another good year. A scream put a large dent in this dream.

It was Valera… and Speed.

"What happened?"

"He said that I looked funny!" Valera was infuriated.

"She punched me in the tummy!" Speed was equally angered.

"Well that's cuz-"

A sharp whistle silenced the two and deepened the quiet in the rest of the room. "There will be no name-calling or physical violence in this room! That goes for all of you!" She was growing anxious; the whistle never came out unless _absolutely_ necessary. This was the first time it had to be used… and it was only the _first_ day.

The toddlers blinked up in awe at their instructor and nodded in unison.

* * *

_One Week Later:_

"Everybody gather around the circle!"

There was a chorus of 'Yes, Miss Violet!'

When everything and everyone was settled, their teacher spoke up excitedly. "We have a new student! Her name is Natalia Boa Vista. Sweetheart, why don't you say hi?"

"Hi! I'm Natalia! I just moved to Floreedah a few days ago!" She grinned widely and waved, her little poofy pigtails bouncing on the sides of her head.

When nobody asked any further questions, the young teacher said, "Okay, does everyone know what they want to do during recess?" After she received a positive response, she let them play with what they wanted to. In half an hour would be naptime.

The exuberant little girl ran over to find herself a friend. She easily spotted the quiet dark skinned boy sitting in the corner playing with some blocks. He looked so lonely; she'd put an end to that.

She ran up to him from behind and plopped beside him. "Hi!" Peering up at his face curiously, she giggled. "I'm Natalia! What's _your_ name?" They little boy gazed at her with the same amount of intense curiosity, but didn't open his mouth.

The little girl shrugged. "It's okay. We don't have to talk. We can play in mute today!" She giggled again as she began to make a block house next to his block castle.

There precious silence was broken by a mischievous little boy. "Hey,_ Boa Vista!_" She turned at the sound of her name.

"Yep?"

"You're late. School started a while ago."

"I know…I just moveded." She looked up at him in wonder. "Who are you?"

"Like I'm gonna tell the late girl!"

"That's mean." Anyone could hear the trembling in her voice.

"I'm just telling you-"

There was a quick, sudden movement to his right. The quiet boy now stood with a brooding expression meant only for his fellow classmate.

"Whoa. Dood. _Chill_." Speed took a step back with his hands raised in defense. _He's weird…_ He went back to the other side of the room to play with his friends.

Natalia chewed on her lip and looked at the boy intriguingly. "You're nice!" She quickly pecked him on the cheek.

A shade of rose spread from his cheeks to the tips of his ears. Before he knew it, blood was coming out of his nose.

Her eyes grew larger. "TEACHIE!"

* * *

The walk over to the nurse's office was a long one. Little Natalia insisted that she should accompany her new friend and so Miss Violet had them both hold hands while she led the way. She couldn't believe so much could happen in one week. _A bloody nose_. _What could have been the cause?_

The two toddlers peered into every room they passed, little Eric not so much, since he had to squeeze his nose and tilt his head back. Both were fascinated that the 'older' kids were in the other classrooms. There wasn't much going and some of the doors were closed, except for one room.

Mrs. Dubinhok, the fourth grade teacher, was shouting up a storm. "Mr. Caine, as I told you on the first day of school, take those sunglasses _OFF_! Must I remind you that we're _inside_ a building!" The response was unheard, but the elderly teacher continued her tangent. "Mr. Elliot, put away that money!" They quickly scurried past that room. The shouting scared them.

The school nurse, Mr. Karson, was an elderly man who always had cakes, cookies, and tea ready for his little visitors so that they felt a bit more comfortable.

That's what the two children's chubby fingers grabbed at upon seeing. Today, there was a tray of large pomegranate cookies. Eric dropped his hand and started munching on one, the little girl following suit.

As the nurse came out of his office, the young preschool teacher explained the situation briefly and then apologized before leaving for her class. She was beginning to grow wary and a bit suspicious of them. _What are they doing in my absence?_

"Eric Delko?" The little boy turned at the sound of his name. His bleeding nose had stopped. "It says here in your medical record that," he lifted the child onto a clean-sheeted stretcher, "that you get bloody noses when you're under a_ lot_ of stress."

Eric just blinked. _I wanna go home…_

Natalia stood happily eating her cookie and waved wildly to her friend, who turned away in embarrassment.

Mr. Karson wiped up Eric's nose and told him with a warm smile, "Have fun! Make friends!" _A sure way of getting rid of stress…_

The tiny child's moist mocha-brown eyes curiously looked around the room. He pointed to jar full of lollipops. The elderly man chuckled, "You're an observant little fellow aren't you? Not many children see this." He brought down the jar and asked both children what flavor they wanted.

"Bl_oo_berry!" Natalia giggled; she loved how the blue color would stain her tongue. Eric just pointed to the purple one, grape.

* * *

They, once again, were told to hold hands and together they scampered past Mrs. Dubinhok's room ("Mr. Caine! _What_ did I _JUST _tell you about those sunglasses!") and returned back to Miss Violet's where they were told to go grab their 'blankies' and find a corner.

It was nap time… but no one was really napping.

Poke.

"OW!" Ryan cried out in a sharp whisper as he rubbed his forehead.

"I didn't poke you _that_ hard." Still, the little tomboy was grinning. "I'm Valera!"

"You're a meany-poo."

"Am not!" She stuck out her tongue. "I told you my name. What's yours?"

"Ryan."

"Hi!"

He pouted. He didn't know how long he had to spend with the crazy girl, but there was a red mark forming on his forehead where she had poked him.

On the other side of the room, near where Eric and Natalia were lying, were two girls who, to Miss Violet's dismay, would not stop their chattering.

"I'm Calleigh!"

"I'm Alexx!"

"Do you like dolls?"

"Uh-huh!"

"Me too!"

"Yay!"

"Let's be friends!"

"Okie!"

"You two," their teacher made her way over, "please be quiet. It's nap time."

"S_orr_y!"

Eric and Natalia were still sucking on their lollipops. The little girl stuck out her tongue and although the lights were out, she could still discern that her tongue was blue. The corners of her sticky mouth curved up. "My tongue is bl_oo_! What about yours?" She stuck out her tongue again to show him the blue color.

He looked at her oddly, but did the same. It was purple. She released a bout of giggles. "Heehee. Yours is bloo too!" Her silliness rubbed off on him as he broke into a wide grin, which made her all the more happy.

* * *

**A/N: **So random! _I_ love it… do you? Let me know! ;DD

Oh yeah, as for Delko… his preliminary attitude is based off of my baby cousin's actions. He (my cousin) has been exposed to a bunch of languages (English, Moroccan, Spanish… I think even some Korean…) and so when he finally began school (nursery school), he wouldn't speak to anyone (at first) because he wasn't sure how to form sentences… like when he spoke, he would be taking words from each language and therefore forming his own sentences and all… it was kind of funky/cool. When he was home though, he would speak naturally and his first word ever, was actually a full sentence (in English), which was cool. So, I decided to incorporate that into Delko's character because he was exposed to three languages growing up. He'll get out of his nutshell…with a lil' help/encouragement… XDD

The bloody nose was from a random fact I read somewhere about Delko's character. (Apparently somewhere in the first or second season, it's mentioned that under stress he gets nosebleeds…)

Oh, and I assumed that lil' Nat just saw all those dark colors as blue… like it all looked the same… LOL… since she's a tot and all… XDD

Stay tuned! XD


	2. Neighbors

**Disclaimer: **I'm too lazy to own CSI Miami. -.-

**A/N:** Yay! I updated!

Some tidbits:

This is still the same day as _Introductions_ (previous chapter).

This is setting the story a little further… backgrounds and all… (hinthintcoughcoughNED!hinthintcoughcough… XD)

The main purpose of this chapter is mainly to prove that Eric as a tot is more, um, Eric-y (for lack of a better word) … XD

(btw, i _know, _the parent thing is REALLY random… LOL)

* * *

**Neighbors:**

"Mommy, mommy!"

The young pregnant woman glanced at the rearview mirror at her daughter bouncing in the back seat. She half-smiled; the little girl had been talking up a storm since they had left the school. "Yes, Natalia?"

"That's the boy!"

"Really? Well, it's good that you're friends with him. That family lives right next to us; they're our _neighbors_."

"Ooo… what's that mean?"

Natalia's mother laughed out loud. "Do you want to say 'hi' to your friend?"

"Mmhmm!" She nodded her head up and down furiously.

"Okay, let's go." She parked in their garage and walked over, Natalia running up ahead. The poor boy didn't see the little girl until she had rammed into him.

"Hi, Eric!" She giggled and waved, her pigtails bobbing up and down. His eyes grew wide in recognition. _Her!_ He ran behind his mother who was gathering up some vegetable plants from the front yard garden. The elder woman laughed whole-heartedly.

"Querido, why don't you say hello to your friend?"

Bashfully, the little boy took the girl's hand and led her inside his house.

Her mother smiled at his. "Hi, it's nice to meet you. I'm Maeve, Natalia's mom. My husband and I just moved in next door." She shook her new neighbor's hand. "I'm really glad that Natalia's already making friends."

"Hi. It's good to meet you. I'm Clorinda, Eric's mother. I apologize if my English is-"

"Oh no! It's fine!" She smiled friendly. "I should learn Spanish, I never really got past the junior high school level. It'd be great if you could teach me!"

"I would love too, if you could help me with my English."

"Of course!"

"I guess we should let them play for a while. Eric's a little shy around strangers."

"Really?"

"The doctors say it's because he's surrounded by so many languages. It makes it difficult for him to speak."

"Oh. Well, I'm sure he'll turn out just fine."

"Sí. Oh, my apologies, please come in! I'll make some tea."

"Oh no, don't worry-"

"I insist!"

* * *

"Where are we going?" She giggled excitedly and ran behind him, the only thing connecting the two were their little pudgy hands.

He stopped in front of a closed door and turned to face her, their faces flushed by the momentary exertion. "I want you to meet my baby sister."

She beamed widely. _He spoke. _"Okay! Let's go!"

They entered the yellow room quietly. In the corner of the room, there sat a wooden oak crib with a baby girl sleeping within.

Natalia gasped in wonder, her eyes sparkling as she asked, "What's her name?"

"Marísol. And you're… Natalia."

The little tot nodded happily at the fact that her new friend remembered. "Eric, we're _neigh_bors!"

"What's that mean?" He tilted his head slightly.

"I don't know," she shrugged, "My mommy said that."

Eric took a flower from his sister's vase of fresh flowers and handed it the little bubbly girl. It was a white violet.

She smiled widely. _What do I have to say… mommy says if I get a gift, I have to say… hmm… I remember! _"Thank you. It's pretty!" She tucked it behind her ear and the boy's ears grew warm as she pecked him on the cheek again. "Can I see _your_ room?"

He nodded and she followed to across the hallway. Everything was a blue underwater theme, even his bedspread was dark blue with grey sharks painted across them. She ran to the window and cried out, "Ooh! Look, there's _my _house. And our windows are so close! That's my room!" She pointed it for him and he nodded in acknowledgment. "Mine's orange. Do you like the beach?"

"Yep!" Eric loved to swim and play in the sand. He ran to the doorway as his mother called for him to come downstairs. "Mamí says that we can come down for tea and pastelitos de coco." When Natalia looked at him with confusion, he said, "they're yummy!" He grinned and she felt her insides melt in glee. She was happy that he could speak. _He's gonna be a good friend.

* * *

_

"May I ask, how many months pregnant are you?"

The woman glowed happily. "I'm actually in the last trimester, eighth month. With Natalia, it didn't show as much, but this one's big." She laughed out loud as she sipped at the tea. "What kind of tea is this?"

"Gingseng."

"Mmm. It's good."

The two children scampered in and plopped into two chairs at the dining table. They sipped at the tea and grabbed some pastries to munch on. Natalia was delighted at how tasty the coconut treats were.

The dusk was painting the sky with a fiery mix of orange and red hues when Natalia's mother decided it would be best to leave. She had to start preparing dinner for her husband who would be home within the hour; Eric's mother needed to as well for her own family.

"Thank you so much for the tea and pastries," Maeve informed her new neighbor and friend.

"Oh, you're welcome to stop by anytime, I do not work."

"Oh, thank you. I'm actually looking for work and-"

"Do you want me to… watch the children?"

"Oh, that would be absolutely wonderful!" She hugged Clorinda in delight; she had been fretting over what Natalia would do with two working parents, but now she had found her solution. "Your family must come over some time for dinner."

"Oh, that'd be nice. Gracias." The two mothers said farewell.

Maeve beckoned her daughter over. "Okay, Natalia say good-bye to your friend."

"Aww…"

"You'll see him tomorrow at school," she reassured her daughter who instantly brightened at that little fact.

"O_kay_, bye Eric!"

"Buh-bye Natalia!"

As the Boa Vistas returned to their home, the small boy turned to his mommy. "Mamí, me gusta ella."

"Usted es justo como su Papí," she teased her son, before pulling him indoors.

* * *

"What have you got there, sweetie?" They had just stepped into the kitchen from the outside.

The tiny girl giggled. "Mommy, Eric gave me a flower!" She pulled it out from behind her ear.

A broad smile swept across her mother's face. _Such a sweet boy…_ "Do you know what kind of flower that is?"

"It's pretty."

"It called a white violet."

"Oooh, that's a pretty name."

Her mother laughed at her intrigued daughter, so full of life. "Natalia, do you know what mommy does to flowers?"

"Umm," she placed her tiny forefinger on her lip, deep in thought.

"Do you want that flower to last _forever_?"

"_Forever?_"

"Yep."

Forever was a concept her mind couldn't really grasp, but she nodded anyway. "I want it to last… forever."

"Okay, come with me." She waddled behind her mom until they were in the living room. "Now, pick a really, really _big_ book."

"_Really_ big?" The three year-old wandered over to the book case and gazed upon the monstrosity before her, the flower dangling from her fingertips. "Umm… that one! The big red one."

It was their two thousand page Merriam-Webster dictionary.

Maeve took it off the shelf and placed it on the floor, pulling Natalia down on her lap. "Okay, _now_, open this book to _any_ page you want."

The little girl giggled; her mother's whispering was tickling her ear. "Okay, Mommy!" She opened to around the last half of the enormous dictionary.

"Now, you put the white violet in and close the book."

"But, the flower will get flat." She looked up at her mommy, clearly upset.

"Trust me, you'll be able to always keep it always… and never throw it away."

"Okie, mommy!" Her spirited nature returned and she closed the book with the flower in between the pages. A white violet. "How long do I have to wait?"

"At least a month or so."

"Aww…" She scrunched her nose in impatience while Maeve replaced the dictionary in its proper spot. _That's so long…_

But children's minds are easily distracted, and so it would be a good twenty or so years 'til she finally reopened the book.

* * *

**A/N**: I know this was random… let me know what you think! Next chapter is back to school… XD

SPANISH TERMS:

_Quierido_: dear

_Pastelitos de coco_: bite-size coconut pastries

_me gusta ella_: I like her.

_Usted es justo como su Papí_: You're just like your father.


	3. Troublesome Gifts

**Disclaimer: **I don't own CSI Miami XP

**A/N:** LOL… thanks to **floofymiko** for inspiring me. This very OOC drabble is based (loosely) on true events. XD … I'd also like to thank my other friend (he knows who he is :P) for helping me out with random parts of this drabble. LOl.

Again, very OOC. RaVe with hints of NED XD

And this is a little out of order, as in time jump… they're eighteen right now. LOL. XD

* * *

**Troublesome Gifts:**

_Ugh… why am I doing this again?…_ The little voice in the back of her head reminded her. _Tomorrow's his birthday…_ She rolled her eyes. _Right, but I'm __**hand-making**__ this… thing for him…_

…_and there goes a chunk of my skin._

She dropped what she was doing to grab a yellow Curious George Band-Aid. A smiling little monkey gazed up at her, covering the spot of red.

_Okie, back to work… I've got a deadline._ She picked up her handiwork and continued on. _So tedious… when, Valera, have you ever been this …meticulous about something?_

_Must be for someone special._

_Shut up._

She groaned. Her stupid thoughts. Her imagination kept wandering off. _Focus! This needs to get done!_ At this rate she would never get any sleep… and she needed to look at least semi presentable when she handed over the gift.

_Wonder who's online…_ She shook her mouse and while sewing, scanned her AIM Buddy List. A teeny, almost unnoticeable sinking feeling settled when she observed that _he_ wasn't on. _Oh well, I've gotta finish this anyways._

A few minutes past before the familiar bing-bing sound caught her attention. It was her good friend, Eric Delko.

_CaramelFrapp_: hey valera, whatre u up to?

_TomBoy144:_ doing a little project.

_CaramelFrapp_: o right, that thing for ryan's bday tom?

_TomBoy144:_ yeah… . so hardddddd

_CaramelFrapp_: hehe, I wouldn't know, but hand-sewing a GameBoy case… sounds… not fun.

When he didn't say anything more, she went back to work. _Only a few more stitches to go… not too bad… it at least looks something like poker chips… _She shook her head. _Why do I do this to myself? _She heard another bing-bing.

_CaramelFrapp_: So… uhm. You're a girl.

_OK… he's just __**asking**__ for it._

_TomBoy144:_ … yeah… im well aware of that fact.

_CaramelFrapp_: … I mean like… would you know what a girl would want?

_TomBoy144:_ gotta be more specific delko…

_CaramelFrapp_: uhm… I don't kno what to get nat for Christmas…

_TomBoy144:_ Uhm… you two've known each other forever… seriously…

_CaramelFrapp_: Yeah I know… but I don't know… I need … a different perspective?

_TomBoy144: _get w.e you want… or make her something… or serenade her.

_CaramelFrapp: _WHAT???

_TomBoy144: _dude, chill… just ask her what she wants or sth.

She went back to sewing. _Almost there. _She chewed on her lower lip in deep concentration and wouldn't have noticed that her other friend was on, if it had not been for the obnoxious flashing orange color vying for her attention. _Hmm…who's that? L0ca4M0cha???_

_L0ca4M0cha:_ hii valera!!

_TomBoy144: _…nat?

_L0ca4M0cha: _yupyup whatcha up to?

_TomBoy144: _er… xmas stuff. Changed your sn?

_L0ca4M0cha:_ mmhmm needed a change from m0cHaL0Ve … I need an opinion.

The eighteen year-old rolled her eyes. _Gee, I wonder what she could possibly be asking…_ _omygosh… YUSH!!!!!!! I. AM. DONE. WOOOO!! Eh… too lazy to wrap it…_ She looked up to see her friend had IM-ed her.

_L0ca4M0cha: _What're you getting Ryan?

_L0ca4M0cha: _Like… I mean are you still making that GameBoy case? But that's a bday gift…

_L0ca4M0cha:_ Cuz im trying to figure out what to do for eric...for xmas

Valera laughed as she ran down to her kitchen, scanning it quickly. _Hmm… _Her eyes fell on the small pile of brown paper lunch bags. _Nice._ After a bit of fumbling, she smiled triumphantly. _It fits. Perfect. Woo Now what to do. Oh right. _Her countenance fell. _Now, Christmas cards..._ She ran back up and responded to her waiting friend.

_TomBoy144:_shrugs i don't kno…

_TomBoy144:_ you and eric have the same tracked mind… LOl

_L0ca4M0cha:_ huh?

_TomBoy144:_ shouldn't you know? Guess what??? I finally finished ryan's gift .

_L0ca4M0cha:_ LOl yay!! XD and … I was thinking about knitting a scarf maybe? But I always forget how to finish those things… LOl.

_TomBoy144:_yawn you did that last year nat

_L0ca4M0cha:_T yeah… im stumped… I would… ask speed, but….

_TomBoy144:_wouldacouldashoulda… P he aint here no more… and theres nothing we can do about it.

_L0ca4M0cha: _yeah…. I guess I'll sleep on it… good night valera!

_TomBoy144:_ Night.

_L0ca4M0cha:_ Oh… wait… eric's on.

_TomBoy144: _LOL… okie well, im gonna go to sleep… don't you forget to lol.

_L0ca4M0cha: _funny PP

_TomBoy144:_ I kno im hysterical D

_L0ca4M0cha:_ LOL… sweet dreams

_TomBoy144:_ you too!!

She said similar goodbyes to Eric, put her away message up, and shut down her computer. _Eh… I'm too lazy to do cards…_

Crawling underneath the sheets, she let the comfort of her bed envelop her as she fell peacefully to sleep.

_

* * *

__Oi… why's this so nervewracking??? No seriously… this, I am way more nervous than I should be…_ She raised her fist to knock on the wooden door, but then chickened out. _Eh, maybe he's not home._

With that thought, she turned around. _Wait… this is stupid… just knock and give… that simple… Stop being such a girl, Valera… just do it._

She raised her fist to knock again, but jumped back when it opened by itself.

"Maxine! Come in, come in." A small brunette woman urged her into the small home. _His mom. _She stepped in and answered the usual 'how are you' questions. "Well, sweetie, I've gotta run, but Ryan's in the kitchen."

"Ok, thanks."

She had to try her best to refrain from laughing when she entered the sparkling white kitchen. It never ceased to amaze her, the cleanliness and order of the Wolfe home. That, and there was Ryan sitting Indian-style on one of the chairs seated at the island. He had his light blue flannel jammies on and was eating freshly baked chocolate chip cookies with a glass of milk.

He looked up as she cleared her throat and his face instantly brightened. "Balerwa!" She cracked a smile. _What a dork._ After swallowing, he apologized. "Sorry, hey! What're you up to? Wanna cookie? My mom just made them."

"Uhm… sure…" She sat beside him and set down the brown paper lunch bag on the countertop. Ryan's mother made amazing baked goods.

Other than the sound of chewing, there was silence for some time, which was broken by a single question.

"Hey, whats that?"

"What?"

"In the bag."

"Oh." Her face flushed. "Uhm… uhm… Happy Birthday!" She shoved the gift awkwardly at him.

"Ooo… can I open it now?"

"If you want…"

He pulled it out of the bag and before he could say anything, she exclaimed, "It's a case for your GameBoy!"

His eyes bugged out. "You made this. . . by _hand_?"

If she thought it was impossible to get any redder, she was wrong. She couldn't trust herself to speak and just nodded quickly.

"Wow…. WOW… I'm impressed." He turned it, opened it, closed it, and scrutinized it, fingers stroking every detail. "_WOW…_ I'm _REALLY_ impressed." He was wearing a very dorky smile. "Thanks!"

"I'm glad you like it."

"Wow."

"I'm gonna head back home now… thanks for the cookies…"

"Oh, ok. Don't forget to stop by later!"

She stuck out her tongue and said, "I won't forget!"

They both laughed and she left the house. _He really liked it._ A huge, dorky smile of her own spread across her face.

* * *

**A/N:** Thoughts? XDDD LOL 


End file.
